Long-term onballer is Carlton's priority

By Melissa RyanAugust 24 2003

Carlton's willingness to trade its newly secured priority pick for an experienced midfielder would not result in a search for a stop-gap player with limited time left in football, Blues recruiting manager Shane O'Sullivan said yesterday.

After the 74-point drubbing from Hawthorn on Friday night, Carlton coach Denis Pagan said the club would consider trading its priority draft pick - which will be pick No.1 or No.2 depending on how the Western Bulldogs finish the season - to secure a proven onballer.

"We've got to be wise with that, and who knows what's on offer there?" Pagan said.

"Someone might want it desperately. We've got a lot of young kids - we've got to consider that when it happens. We're certainly going to be able to get an uncontracted player come pre-season draft and who knows what can happen when the trade period's on. There's plenty of opportunities and we've got to make sure we make the most of them."

O'Sullivan said two midfielders were urgently needed but the offer had to be worthy of the price paid in giving up a priority pick.

"If we did let it go, the player that we'd be after would have to play for a long time at Carlton. It wouldn't be a 28/29-year-old player, it would be a player who could play at least six to eight years," O'Sullivan said. "But a few of the young boys who will be drafted earlier are really good midfielders so we've just got to weigh up which way the coach and the match committee want to go."

Former Carlton president John Elliott said yesterday he had erred in stating club greats Stephen Silvagni and Craig Bradley had been paid money promised to them under his regime.

Carlton, Bradley and Silvagni all denied Elliott's claims, and while Elliott told 3AW he had been wrong, he believed the club would pay them. "I made the mistake on Thursday night saying the money had been paid. It had been provided for in Carlton's accounts. The club has not yet paid them but it is going to pay them," Elliott said.